Lawyers know that a well-written, authoritative memorandum of law in support of a motion can often make the difference between winning and losing a case.

But as a busy attorney, you often have too many other things to do besides researching the case law, cite-checking supporting references, and structuring arguments.

A good research attorney can take the time to read through the case law and statutes, develop lines of reasoning, and craft the most persuasive written arguments on your client's behalf, all while you attend to the rest of your practice.

There is no need to procrastinate in filing a motion, responding to discovery or composing a brief. Hiring me today can help you avoid incurring a client's ire (or worse, a malpractice claim) by missing a deadline under the procedural rules.

Reason #2: Because you'll save money for yourself.

You may have thought about hiring an associate or law clerk to cope with the occasional overflow of work, but you've balked at the overhead costs involved: salary, office expenses, health & retirement benefits, malpractice insurance, Westlaw®* access, and so on.

And what about those times when there's not enough work to justify the expense of a full-time associate?

I am paid only for the hours I actually work on the project you assign, thus you can avoid the overhead expenses that come with a full-time employee.

You can also use me to defer making a decision about hiring someone else permanently until you have a candidate pool you're happy with.

Reason #3: Because you'll save money for your clients.

My hourly ratesare low. I charge only $60/hour to you, the hiring attorney. You can pass these savings directly on to the client, or you may be able to add a reasonable surcharge to my rate.

Reason #4: To increase you practice's flexibility.

A lawyer's workload naturally varies from week to week.Sometimes there is simply too much to do, especially for solo practitioners and for small firms with few or no associates. It is often simply inefficient and impractical to handle everything by yourself.

By hiring me for temporary research & writing projects as they come up, you can deliver a sophisticated legal product for your client in a timely and cost-effective manner.

Also, if a client comes in with a legal issue you don't normally handle but would like to explore, you can use my legal research services to deliver some preliminary answers even if you later refer the client elsewhere.

Reason #5: Because I actually like legal research and writing.

Not every lawyer enjoys closely analyzing opposing counsel's motion or brief, then researching the relevant case law and statutes to craft timely, concise yet thorough counterarguments.

I do.

Not every lawyer has time to explore the finer points of case law or legal theory required to construct a persuasive trial or appellate brief.

Reason #6: Because of the scope of online research tools I offer at no charge to you.

I have a wide-ranging subscription to Westlaw®*, including

allstate and federal cases for every U.S. state and federal court

all state statutes and court rulesannotated

all federal statutes annotated

United States Code annotated

*This website, Kentucky Legal Research, and George Schuhmann are not formally associated with Westlaw® or with Thomson Reuters/West. A July 2008 study by two Stanford Law School librarians found that Westlaw® is widely favored by litigation attorneys among internet-based legal research tools. See the survey at http://www.law.stanford.edu/publications/projects/lrps/pdf/lomiowayne-rp23.pdf